Total global deaths from ambient air pollution in millions (2021)

4.7

(58% of all air pollution deaths)

Most ambient air pollution deaths in 2021 per 100,000 people

153

(Serbia)

Highest population-weighted PM2.5 level (µg/m3) in 2020

85.1

(Niger)

WHO Air Quality Guideline Value (annual PM2.5 in µg/m3)

5

Countries with the highest ambient air pollution deaths
Ambient Air Pollution Deaths and Income (GDP)

Total ambient air pollution deaths in Asia in millions (2021)

3.4

(72% of global total)

Highest total ambient air pollution deaths in millions (2021)

1.9

(China)

Most ambient air pollution deaths in 2021 per 100,000 people

131

(China)

Highest PM2.5 exposure

48.4

(India)

Highest mortality from ambient air pollution in Asia
Ambient Air Pollution Deaths and Income (GDP)
Levels of population-weighted PM2.5 exposure
Ambient air pollution deaths per 100,000 population

The data used in this dashboard is shown below and can be downloaded as a CSV.

Air pollution is the leading environmental health risk in the world, contributing more than 8 million deaths globally in 2021. Ambient or outdoor air pollution characterized by PM2.5 (fine particulate matter) causes 58% of this health burden.

The data used in this work is from the Institute for Health Metrics and Evaluation (IHME)’s 2021 Global Burden of Disease (GBD) Study, with focus on the estimated ambient air pollution exposure and resulting mortality as published by the Health Effects Institute in 2024. GDP data was obtained from the World Bank while the shapefiles and other relevant information were imported from the rnaturalearth and gapminder r packages.

Sources:

Global Burden of Disease Collaborative Network. Global Burden of Disease Study 2021 (GBD 2021) Cause-Specific Mortality 1990-2021. Seattle, United States of America: Institute for Health Metrics and Evaluation (IHME), 2024.

Health Effects Institute. 2024. State of Global Air 2024. Available: www.stateofglobalair.org [accessed 06/26/2024]. Data source: Global Burden of Disease Study 2021. IHME, 2024

World Bank. GDP per capita, PPP (constant 2021 international $). Available: https://data.worldbank.org/indicator/NY.GDP.PCAP.PP.KD?skipRedirection=true&year=2023 [accessed 06/26/2024]

*For questions and collaborations, please reach out to https://www.linkedin.com/in/everlyn-tamayo/. This dashboard was prepared as part of the GRAPH (Global Research and Analyses for Public Health) R Masterclass on Data Cleaning, GIS, GitHub, and Dashboards.